Mailbag - Nov. 25, 2001

This is in response to the Nov. 6 article on the proposal by Rep. John

Campbell to do a set-aside on the funds obtained from El Morro to

refurbish Crystal Cove (“Plans for cove restoration defended”). I don’t

mean to beat a dead horse or throw my sour grapes all over the pages of

this newspaper. I lived at the cove for 31 years, paid $35,000 for my

house in 1970, and when I was evicted, all I got was the eviction notice,

not a cent.

Anyway, there’s a great deal of misunderstanding about the cove and

how we got in there, and forget that -- scratch that. My point is this,

that on four separate occasions, Campbell refused to meet with two other

representatives from the cove and myself to hear our suggestion that they

take the half a million or so that we all contributed in annual net,

profit/rent, and do a set-aside on that to refurbish our cottages and

open them up to the public when the state was ready to do it.

Well, Campbell refused to meet with us. I talked to a very nice senior

field rep, and it sounded like I was talking to someone from the Parks

and Recreation with the propaganda line they were putting up that this is

to open the cove up to the public.

Well, take a look at the cove now. Rangers and maintenance people are

going to occupy my house and my neighbors’ houses. The public access

there is worse than it was when we were there. The very idea of extending

El Morro’s lease makes me want to throw up. That’s the most beautiful

spot on the coast, and it offers the easiest and more logical

cost-effective way to move out the trailers and put in modular housing

and open space for the public.

The public is not into Crystal Cove, and it looks like with the budget

problems, they’re not going to be in there for a long time. Jeanette

Merrilees, who heads up the Laguna organization, told me one time she and

her husband were first on the list to move into my house. Well, now

Merrilees has got to get rid of the maintenance personnel. Incidentally,

they just painted my house; it looks beautiful.

All in all, though, Campbell is obviously just going after the

250-plus votes that are encamped in El Morro. He sure as heck isn’t

concerned about doing the right thing.

JIM THOBE

Laguna Beach

* EDITOR’S NOTE: Jim Thobe was commodore of the Crystal Cove Yacht

Club

Columnist should still write about everything

I hope it’s not the Pilot’s intention to pigeonhole columnist Steve

Smith into writing only about families. He has been great for the

community of Costa Mesa to make the citizens aware of what’s been going

on in Costa Mesa.

He’s risen morality in Costa Mesa. He was completely right on about

trustee Jim Ferryman and other issues.

Our community needs to be aware of Steve Smith’s ideas and values.

CAROL LEONARD

Newport Beach